Dental Erosion: Lets meet the culprits

What is erosion? As per scientists, it is the process caused by water flow and wind which removes the soil and rock from Earth. In the dental terminology erosion is caused on the enamel of the teeth. As per dental erosion the enamel gets removed because of its exposure to acid. This results in pain or as we popularly know it Tooth Sensitivity. The reason is, once the surface is eroded the nerves gets exposed and when these nerves come in touch with hot or cold.

Because of these acidic drinks, the enamel becomes softer which results in mineral loss. But there is a back up mechanism in our mouth which nullifies the loss of minerals. This back up mechanism is called Saliva which reduces the acidity level and in turn gives our teeth that natural balance. However the fact is we humans have a habit of consuming these acidic foods time and again. This in turn does not give much time for our mouth to normalize hence resulting in teeth being worn out.

The level of acidity is measured in pH value. So if you are consuming anything which has a pH value of above 5.5 then be ready to lose the enamel. The culprits of dental erosion are regular sodas, carbonated drinks, flavored fizzy waters, sports drinks, fruit and fruit juices. So its always been advised to either give up on these drinks or if you want to consume them then make sure you do not do it too often.

There was a recent study in which dentist examined nearly 3773 participants to check dental erosion. It was found that 79% of examines were suffering from dental erosion and they broke down this figure into three parts – mild erosion, moderate erosion and severe. So as per the findings : 64% were suffering from mild erosion, 10% from moderate and 5% severe.

The only way we can control or eliminate dental erosion from our teeth is by cutting down on acidic foods such as pickles, too much lemon and acidic drinks such as regular sodas, carbonated drinks, flavored fizzy waters, sports drinks, fruit and fruit juices. Its our teeth and surely love them and any pain due to sensitivity is unbearable so take good care and stay healthy.